A HISTORY OF TIME: Known for their simplicity and style, antique Ansonia clocks from Connecticut are found today throughout the world.

Started in 1850 in Derby, Conn., the Ansonia Clock Co. was founded by Anson Phelps, an established metal importer who operated the Ansonia Brass Co.

After he partnered with Franklin Andrews and Theodore Terry, son of the renowned clock maker Eli Terry, Ansonia's company became by the 1880s one of the major American clock manufacturers, with sales offices in Chicago, London and New York.

At first, the company offered a variety of mostly mantel and wall clocks, but an extensive line of novelty and figurine clocks was added. By 1914, Ansonia was at its peak, making more than 440 models.

In addition to huge domestic sales volume, it was also exporting large quantities to Australia, Japan, China, and 20 other countries. Sales declined, however, at the end of World War I, when Ansonia's competitors began gaining ground by improving their own production lines.

The company responded by slashing prices on its clocks, which proved to be a fatal mistake. In 1929, the clock maker was forced into liquidation, and all of its assets were sold to a Russian company.

The trademark and name, however, was resurrected in 1969 as the Ansonia Clock Co. of Lynwood, Wash. The revived company sold imported clocks under the Ansonia name until 2006.

WHAT IT'S WORTH: Fagan says that Hambacher's clock is an eight-day mantel clock known as the "Triumph" model and dates to the 1880s.

Also known as the Mirrorsides model for the canted mirrors on its sides, it came in 14 versions and was made in a variety of woods with distinctively decorated glass tablets in front.

This particular clock has a woodblock print-style scene of tree branches, a bird, a spider web, a fan and inside a crescent moon, the word "Ansonia" is spelled out in an Oriental-style lettering.

If valued for auction, Fagan estimates that the clock would bring $600 to $900.